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"Antarctica was the final continent on our checklist," says Lynden Air Cargo President Rick Zerkel. "Now we can cross it off." Lynden Air Cargo has joined a short list of operators that serve all seven continents by starting a new project in support of an Italian Antarctic Expedition team doing research on the icy land mass.

The month-long mission lasted from Oct. 30 through Nov. 30 and involved carrying supplies from Christchurch, New Zealand to Italian base Mario Zucchelli Station and Phoenix Field at McMurdo Station, the U.S. base in Terra Nova Bay, Antarctica. According to Lynden Air Cargo Captain Pat Madland, Terra Nova Bay is about 2,000 miles and 7 hours from Christchurch, and Phoenix Field is 300 miles further south and about 8 hours flying time. "This was accomplished with an augmented crew to allow for rest," Pat explains. "We also carry a loadmaster and mechanic." The whole operation requires nine people on the ground in Christchurch.

"This high-profile project illustrates Lynden Air Cargo’s capabilities in remote locations," says Adam Murray, Director of Business Development and Marketing. "With 98 percent of the continent covered in ice, there are no cities or villages. This is another addition to our capabilities and we hope to provide this service next year and on an ongoing basis if possible."

"The cargo on the first two trips to Terra Nova Bay consisted mostly of helicopters. We carried two Squirrel helicopters on each trip. Since then, the cargo has been scientific equipment and food," Pat says. "Although it’s exciting to go to Antarctica, Lynden Air Cargo crews are used to flying to remote locations in challenging conditions. Antarctica closely resembles Greenland with its mountainous terrain covered with an ice cap. Much of the continent is around 10,000 feet high although we landed on sea ice runways at sea level. Most of our Lynden crews have been to six continents and it’s nice to add the seventh."

Lynden International’s Chicago office recently moved to a new facility. According to District Operations Manager Jason Hiti-Shannon, along with 50 percent more warehouse space, the office features upgraded IT infrastructure and security systems to better serve a diverse and growing customer base.

"We look forward to using this facility to further our goal to be a significant player in our markets and in advancing the One Lynden brand throughout the Midwest," Jason says.

Alaska West Express truly walks the talk when it comes to handling and transporting hazardous materials over challenging terrain with the utmost respect for safety, pollution prevention and the environment. Over the last five years, Alaska West has transported an average of 14 million gallons of fuel annually with no accidents. This year alone, drivers have traveled nearly 5 million miles without a recordable accident. Since joining the EPA SmartWay Transport Partnership in 2012, Alaska West has increased fuel efficiency by 25 percent while increasing the average payload by 10 percent. This means moving freight with less fuel and an overall 26 percent reduction in CO2 emissions per ton mile.

"Over the last several years, we have continued to make Alaska West Express’s trailering equipment more efficient," explains Alaska West Express President Eric Badger. "Our 406 and 407 tanker fleet is predominantly 5-axle, leading to a dramatically increased payload while reducing fuel consumption and number of trips. We have also purchased eight DOT 407 chemical tanks to allow us to haul over 2,000 gallons more per load."

Earlier this year, Alaska West Express took delivery of 10 Wilson aluminum 53-foot 5-axle flatbed trailers providing a 72,000-pound payload. They also feature a tire inflation system with heat-sensing devices that will alert the driver to an elevated wheel-end temperature. Alaska West drivers helped test the system from prototype to production.

According to Director of Maintenance Tommy Douthit, auxiliary power units provide heat and power to the cab when the truck is turned off and have helped reduce idle time by over 40 percent. Tire pressure monitoring equipment and laser alignment of tires reduces tire wear and also contributes to fuel efficiency. Newer, more efficient engines, combined with the improved fuel economy and payload, have led to a 39 percent reduction in particulate matter emissions and an 83 percent reduction in nitrous oxide emissions. "This contributes to better air quality in places like Anchorage and Fairbanks where winter inversions can trap pollution," Tommy says.

The Fairbanks line haul fleet is equipped with an onboard oil filtration system that allows maintenance to stretch out oil changes from 750 hours to around 2,500 hours or more. "We are only performing full oil changes on an annual basis now," Tommy says. "This translates to about a 75 percent reduction in engine oil use. Nothing goes to waste, as used oil from the trucks is then used to heat the parts warehouse in Fairbanks." The company is also testing a disc brake pad free of copper and other metals to meet an upcoming EPA requirement to preserve sea life in the Pacific Ocean.

Efficiency is not limited to equipment. Over the last several years, Alaska West’s Fairbanks facility has converted nearly 90 percent of its lights to LEDs which have dramatically improved lighting quality and led to a savings of $50,000 per year in electricity costs. "This year, we also upgraded our primary heating system boilers to improve efficiency and added propane fired air exchangers to augment our floor heat. This gives us faster recovery time and quicker thaw cycles for our equipment to allow us to haul freight in snowy conditions," Tommy says.

Lynden Air Cargo’s fleet of L382G aircraft now include fuel-efficient Microvanes that allow for energy savings as well as increased speed. Engineered by Lockheed and licensed to Metro Aerospace, the Microvanes are small aerodynamic components that are surface mounted to the aft fuselage, effectively reshaping the air flow around the cargo door and tail. They reduce total drag on the aircraft while reducing fuel and thrust requirements. The Microvanes are expected to result in fuel savings of up to 4 percent (up to 34,000 gallons of fuel saved per aircraft per year) depending on flight length on the Lynden fleet.

"This project supports our ongoing efforts to support Lynden’s overall green initiative," says Ethan Bradford, head of Technical Services for Lynden Air Cargo. "We assisted Metro Aerospace to acquire FAA approval for installation and now we have the first set of Microvanes installed on N405LC. We hope to install them on the remaining fleet by the end of 2019."

The first long-range mission to prove the effectiveness of the Microvanes was to Antarctica via Christchurch, New Zealand, to support an Italian research group. The Microvanes provide a margin of safety for these long flights.

When an aircraft is grounded, or Aircraft On Ground (AOG), every minute counts. Regular aerospace customer UTair recently asked for Lynden's help when one of its passenger planes was grounded waiting for a new engine.

The Lynden International team quickly scheduled trucks to transport the heavy haul freight to Miami International Airport, took care of customs documentation and booked a flight to move the 15,000-pound engine to UTair's Moscow hub within four days.

"We usually deliver smaller parts for the Russian airline, but this request gave us an opportunity to show that we can handle any size freight – and come through on a critical shipment," says Sergey Buchumov, Head of Business Development and Sales in Moscow.

Lynden International chartered two Antonov aircraft to ship fragile tube bundles from Houston to the Kingdom of Bahrain, located just off the eastern coastline of Saudi Arabia in the Persian Gulf. Bahrain is a small archipelago of 33 islands and is seeing a resurgence in oil and gas activity.

According to Lynden International District Manager Diana Martinez, "We began working on this proposal a year ago." Lynden was selected for the job and began the complicated move by picking up eight tube bundles in Beasley, TX and bringing them to the Lynden warehouse for crating.

They were then moved to the airport for loading on the two chartered Antonov AN-124s. Each plane carried four tube bundles, each weighing 50,500 pounds and measuring 44 feet by 13 feet by 5 feet. Total aircraft weight: 202,000 pounds. "The tube bundles are used for heat exchangers and they are extremely fragile. The thin tubing on the inner structure is easily bent," Diana explains. With Lynden's careful handling, the bundles were delivered on time and in perfect condition.

Lynden is known for responding to emergencies. In a recent case, a pilot made an emergency landing on Etolin Island, AK with no landing strip and a windshield covered with oil. The pilot radioed for help and was flown to Ketchikan for medical assistance, leaving the damaged plane behind. A few days later a helicopter arrived, lashed it onto the skids and flew it to the Wrangell Airport where it was dismantled and loaded onto an Alaska Marine Lines flat.

Driver Doug Schwartz worked with the plane's owners to get it to the port for shipment on an Alaska Marine Lines barge going to Juneau. The customers were extremely appreciative of Doug's help with the unusual move and wrote in their feedback card, "Thank you, Doug, for your expertise and quick service. You were invaluable. We hope to never have to ship an airplane again!"

Alaska Marine Lines, an Alaska marine transportation company, is expanding its service from Seattle and Anchorage to the Arctic Region in 2019. Bowhead Transport will provide the destination services at the North Slope villages of Point Hope, Point Lay, Wainwright, Utqiagvik (Barrow), and Kaktovik. Alaska Marine Lines will also service Deadhorse with its two annual sealifts. Bowhead, thru its teaming agreement with Alaska Marine Lines, will continue to participate in the door-to-shore service to the Arctic that it initiated over 30 years ago.

The new stops will be added to Alaska Marine Lines’ many ports of call, joining the major hubs of Naknek, Dillingham, Nome, Bethel and Kotzebue and more than 65 villages along the coast of Western Alaska.

“Adding these new locations allows us to meet our goal of serving the entire state of Alaska, from Ketchikan to Kaktovik. From April to October each year we bring essential supplies to local villages in Western Alaska and provide critical support to the seafood industry,” says Alaska Marine Lines President Kevin Anderson. “Bowhead Transport has been serving Alaska for decades and we are proud to team with them to continue to provide the excellent service their customers depend on.”

For more information or to book a shipment, contact Alaska Marine Lines at 800-426-3113 or westernakcs@lynden.com.

Parts of a vintage 727 jetliner were strapped to an Alaska West Express trailer at the Future of Flight Museum in Everett and hauled to a hangar at Columbia Pacific Aviation in Moses Lake, WA. The noteworthy move was covered by Seattle's KING–5 TV and Alaska West Express Driver Tom Lardie was featured on that night's newscast. The museum closed after 13 years and all the planes were taken down from the ceiling and hauled to new homes at other museums or moved into storage. "Dispatcher Roger VanMeter set this move up and knocked it out of the park," says Tacoma Service Center Manager Neil Cranford. "His planning and communication with the customer and driver insured that this freight moved without any damage or issues. It should also be noted that our driver, Tom Lardie, handled the move with the utmost professionalism. Having experienced drivers like Tom makes hauling oversize freight such as this possible." The fuselage was part of the original team plane for the Vancouver Canucks hockey team. According to Tom, it drew quite a bit of attention rolling down Interstate 90 from Western to Eastern Washington.

Looking back to when sunny skies drew approximately 1,000 employees and friends to the annual Lynden Picnic this past summer. Barbecued salmon was on the menu, as usual, plus 1,000 ears of sweet corn that arrived the day before from Kallstrom Farms in Ephrata, WA. According to Sandy Hartman of LTI, Inc., drivers and office staff shucked corn for most of Friday afternoon to prepare for the big day on Saturday. "The water slides and toys were a big hit this year," Sandy says. "At 4 p.m., when the games had to come down it was hard to tell the wee ones it was over." Lillybug face painting and henna tattoos were also popular along with wagon rides, the money pit, music and more. We had a great time at this family event!